Jeremy Corbyn

Since last Saturday (12th September) when Jeremy Corbyn was duly elected to be Leader of the Labour Party, I have lost count of the number of people who have asked me my thoughts on him and his victory.

So I thought I'd try and figure out what my thinking on Corbyn is.

I was 100% behind Andy Burnham in his leadership campaign and was really disappointed for him. But, I know that Andy Burnham is 100% loyal to his leader whoever that is. That gives me a start towards my feelings on Corbyn. To take on the Government and to effectively challenge them Corbyn needs our loyalty and support.

I am also guided by another person I respect who has worked for more politicians than I could ever have met. Right at the outset of the leadership election, he stated that he was supporting Corbyn and did the design on his print materials. (Not that I got any communication from Corbyn during the leadership election campaigning.)

My thoughts are this:

Jeremy Corbyn has been duly elected.

I instinctively support his anti-austerity platform because it is right and because I see the impact of the Government's flawed austerity agenda on the poorest and most vulnerable people in our community and on local government.

I really want a Labour Government in 2020 and although many are repeating the mantra that Jeremy Corbyn won't or can't win, well what if he did? Stranger things have happened.

I support Jeremy Corbyn's stance on renationalisation of the railways and Andy Burnham's suggestion of how this could be done. When EastCoast mainline was in public control recently while waiting for tenders it made money for the Treasury!

Jeremy Corbyn's age: my reaction is so what? When did our society become so ageist? Our political leaders always used to be older and it was accepted that they would have life experience and that's not such a bad thing.

Singing the National Anthem: I was aghast at the media's reaction to this. Seriously, who cares whether a politician sings along to a song when actually what should have been in the news are the issues of:
cuts to tax credits which provide a safety net to poor families,
increasing numbers of people (including children) having to go to places where volunteer groups provide meals and food banks and so many more important issues.

If his focus, as mine is, is to do good for people then more power to his elbow.

So ultimately, let's give the bloke a chance. I have a feeling we'll be pleasantly surprised.

I went to see Arakan Creative's new film Freesia this evening. I still don't really know how to properly communicate how I felt while watching it.

The production is really brilliant. I recognised so many of the locations as it is filmed locally and I even recognised some of my lovely constituents who appear in the film. 

But let's be honest although the acting is great and it's a really well done film, the subject that it is highlighting is actually quite horrific. I will try not to give any spoilers away but basically it's 3 separate stories intertwined which highlight different aspects of Islamophobia.

To be honest this is what I found so difficult. I genuinely do not care what colour a persons skin is or what languages they speak or what religion they follow. I care that we are all human and have so much to learn from one another and to share with one another. It hurts to see and be confronted with such ignorance, hate, bigotry and persecution of one group of people by another group of people.

However, there is hope.

There's a beautiful scene in the film which I think will stay with me for a long time, where a white lady at a bus stop strikes up a conversation with a young Muslim girl. It's really beautiful and I hope that we can all have a lot more conversations like the "bus stop" conversation where we just chat and get on with being nice humans. 

When you see Freesia advertised on general release or at any festivals etc - I highly recommend you take the time to see this incredible piece of work.

Freesia

Three 

Street Feeding & Volunteering

Street Feeding - It's been a while since I last went down to help out with the In Touch Foundation team but this evening I joined them in Bradford City Centre to serve food to over 70 people in the drizzly rain.

I was expecting that it would be pretty much the same people who I had served at the Curry Circle last Thursday (see my recent post) but sadly there were only approximately 5-6 people that had also been there. It worries me that there are so many people in Bradford in need of a basic essential - a hot meal.

Think about it as you read this. Imagine having to queue up among a crowd of other people wondering if there will be enough food for you, wondering what it is, wondering if it will keep you filled until your next meal. 

There is a reason why the food is served on the street out in the open and that is because the food is taken to where the people in need are and where they congregate. 

It saddened me to see people I know, people I don't know and people who have disabilities or addictions. There were people from every different background - young, old, male, female. People who didn't want to talk and didn't raise their eyes and people who wanted the interaction and a bit of human contact and a genuine, caring, smile. 

After all the guests have eaten their fill - firsts, seconds and takeaways if wanted, all the volunteers are encouraged to eat. It's a beautiful act of fellowship and togetherness as well as ensuring that there is zero food waste.

Volunteering - What I did love however, both about this evening with the In Touch Foundation group and the Muslim Women's Council - Curry Circle group, is that the volunteers are all truly amazing individuals also drawn from every background - also young, old, male, female, different faith backgrounds and none. This evening I met teachers, charity workers, supermarket workers and degree students from all over our District and beyond. Some people who live elsewhere but work or study in Bradford and then stay late to help serve.

The volunteers in our District do Bradford proud. There are so many people who give of themselves to serve others and in so doing they are making our community a very special place to be.

Hate vs Love

This is going to take me a while to process.

I went to see Halima's Path today as part of the Remembering Srebenica events co-ordinated by my colleagues Cllrs Adrian Farley and Alex Ross-Shaw.

The film is essentially about a grieving mother trying to find her adopted son who was of mixed heritage.

The film itself was really well done and it's obvious why it's won so many awards.

But, the reality of the hate that exists in our world, the way we think about ourselves and others, the way one group of people persecutes another, the way we let hate, instead of love, prevail, really hit me.

It reminded me of Rwanda and the hate that devastated that nation in 1994.

It reminded me of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.

It reminded me of Apartheid in South Africa.

It reminded me of the Holocaust and the persecution by the Nazi's of anyone who they didn't like, disabled, Jews, LGBT, Roma and so on.

It reminded me of Israel and Palestine.

Is it really hate though or is it lack of understanding, lack of friendship between people who have different backgrounds?

It hurts to look at the darkness in the world.

But as Martin Luther King said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."

So my prayer is that I want to be part of bringing light and love into more of this world.

The Curry Circle

I'm writing this from the comfort of my own home. It may just be a modest terrace house but it's warm, comfortable and there's a well stocked kitchen.

But the same cannot be said for all of the incredible men, women and children I met this evening.

Myself and a colleague, Cllr Arshad Hussain, went to serve alongside a team of volunteers at the Muslim Women's Council, Curry Circle.

The Curry Circle is not like any other food bank or "soup kitchen" I've ever experienced before (and I have experienced a few). The first thing I noticed was the way everything was laid out like a banquet, with round tables and crisp white table cloths. It's like a banquet of Grace.

We arrived at 6pm and already there were so many people gathered, sharing conversation over hot cups of tea, coffee or hot chocolate.

The incredibly delicious food is made and delivered by My Lahore's so the guests at this Curry Circle evening get beautiful food.

There is zero waste because when the food has been served from 7pm and when everyone has eaten they are welcome to have seconds and if they have a tub or container they can take some food away with them.

On this particular evening because we've had nice summer weather, an ice cream van came along and everyone (including volunteers) was treated to an ice-cream.

For those 2 hours it felt like we were all the same and we all belonged there, as part of One Bradford, united in fellowship over a meal. There was no preaching, no strings just love, acceptance, belonging and grace.

However, as I drove home afterwards, I couldn't stop the tears. It hurts my heart that there are so many people in need of good food, companionship and love. Yes, they received this at the Curry Circle but what now? Not everyone is blessed with warm, secure, affordable, comfortable places to call home. Not everyone has a sense of belonging.

As I go about the rest of my evening and week, I will also be holding these people and volunteers in my heart.

I am and always have been determined that politics is for purpose. We must ensure that whatever can be done is done to help those in our community who may need or want help.